364 TRS fuels instructor never stops learning, becomes 'student' again while deployed Published May 3, 2013 By Master Sgt. Leisa Grant Air Force Central Command Public Affairs KABUL, Afghanistan -- In a small neatly-organized room lined with cabinets full of testing items, equipment on counters, bubbling fluids and glowing lights, stands a lone Airman at work. He appears to be a chemist, wearing safety goggles and protective gloves. NCS Fuels Laboratory supervisor, Tech. Sgt. Matthew Copley's work is invaluable to missions all throughout Afghanistan. He is no chemist, but without his position, missions would be left to chance. There would be no one to guarantee fuel was of the highest quality possible and the viscosity and purity was spot on. The lab he works in is responsible for fuel testing and quality assurance for the International Security Assistance Force, NATO and other supporting nations, according to Shaun Harrop, a laboratory technician at NCS. This includes fuel and diesel used in aircraft, generators, and vehicles. Some jobs, while important, may affect only a local area. The fuels that are tested at the NCS Fuels Lab ultimately end up hundreds of miles away and thousands of feet high, in any direction. "I am here to make sure the fuel is exactly what they say it is," Copley said. If fuel is not A-level tested, over time, it will become off spec, or simply put, not as good as it needs to be for the end user, he added. This is especially true in Afghanistan where the air quality is poor. Particles, water and foreign debris can be so small that the human eye will not notice it, potentially, could cause an aircraft to fail in flight, Copley said. "If the job was not executed correctly or with the utmost precision, every passenger, pilot or crewman would be at risk of crashing in the Taliban's backyard." As an Airman who cares deeply about the safety of his fellow Airmen and coalition service members, he has a big responsibility to ensure other Airmen behind him maintain the same standards of performance. Back at his home station, Sheppard Air Force Base, Texas, Copley is a fuels instructor. Deploying in this position, he is half way around the world and performing duties foreign to his teaching job. In a sense, he has become a student himself, but embraces the experience much the same way his own students do during his classes. "Being an instructor is rewarding because you are given Airmen who are hungry for knowledge," Copley said, adding that he directly affects their careers and gains satisfaction knowing he is starting them down the right road. "It is worthwhile to know that their success may someday be attributed to a single moment in my class," he said. Copley does not have students here to teach, but his duties correlate to what is expected of him as an instructor. Prior to his arrival at the lab, he had not anticipated learning such a steep level of information and new technology. But, similar to his own knowledge-craving Airmen back at the schoolhouse, he is learning new techniques and testing methods. All the while, he is combining it with his instructor experience to work through challenges. "As an instructor you are often handed a problem and expected to solve it," he said. "You are asked to work above your rank and finish a task in an extremely limited amount of time. The same can be said of this deployed position. If fuel is not meeting specifications, then you must put your heads together and figure out the chemical imbalance." If these types of problems cannot be resolved, planes don't fly and missions come to a halt. There really is just one option - it has to work. "You are out on an edge and expected to make hard decisions," Copley said. "Lives depend on it." When Copley returns to his instructor duties, he won't be flipping a switch and leaving everything he experienced here behind. "Being an instructor is a great experience simply because you get to take a seed and plant it." he said. "Showing respect to the younger Airmen and sharing operational stories of what they can expect, what they need to do and how they can learn from my mistakes gives me the feeling that I am strengthening the next generation of war fighters."